Day 13: Franz Josef → Wanaka via Haast Pass
2026-11-14 · Franz Josef → Wānaka
176 mi · 284 km · 4h 24m @40mph
Leave by 9am for the wild South Westland coast and Haast Pass: Knights Point lookout, the Ship Creek boardwalks, then over the pass past Thunder Creek and Fantail Falls to the Blue Pools at Makarora. Arrive Wanaka around 4:30pm for a lakefront stroll to That Wanaka Tree.
Stops
- Knights Point Lookout~09:38viewpointDramatic clifftop coastal lookout on the wild South Westland highway between the glaciers and Haast.
- Ship Creek~11:16walkTwo short boardwalk loops — kahikatea swamp forest and a windswept dune lake — on the South Westland coast.
- Thunder Creek Falls~12:53sightA 28 m waterfall a five-minute walk off the Haast Pass highway.
- Fantail Falls~14:31walkPretty roadside waterfall fanning over rock into the Haast River — a five-minute stop on the Haast Pass drive.
- Blue Pools, Haast Pass~16:09walkShort forest walk to startlingly clear glacial-blue pools and a swing bridge.
- #ThatWanakaTree~17:47viewpointThe lone willow standing in Lake Wānaka — NZ’s most photographed tree.
Tonight: Wānaka
No place picked for this night yet.
In Wānaka base plan
- Hampshire Holiday Parks – Wanaka holiday-park
Formerly Wanaka Lakeview. Two-night stay about a 12-minute walk from town and the lakefront.